Method of handling stores



May 7, 1963 R. R. ALUISE ETAL 3,038,612

METHOD OF HANDLING STORES Filed May 26, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INV ROBERT R. ALU/SE CHARLES n. WEBB HOMER EUGENE VIOLETTE BY M O w ATTORNEYS May 7, 1963 R. R. ALUISE ETAL 3,088,612

METHOD OF HANDLING STORES Filed May 26, 1961 s Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS ROBERT Fr! ALU/SE' CHARLES W. WEBB HOMER EUGENE VIOLETTE WCQW" ATTORNEYS y 1963 R. R. ALUISE ETAL 3,088,612

METHOD OF HANDLING STORES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed May 26, 1961 FIG. 4

INVENTORS i ROBERT R. ALUISE CHARLES w. WEBB HOMER EUGENE VIOLETT'E ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,088,612 METHOD OF HANDLENG STORES Robert R. Aluise, Silver Spring, Md, Charles W. Webb, Mountain View, Calif., and Homer Eugene Violette, Wheaten, Md., assiguors, by mesne assignments, to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Filed May 26, 1961, Ser. No. 113,046 4 Claims. (Cl. 214152) The present invention relates to a method of handling stores, and more particularly to a method of transferring missiles and boosters from a supply ship or shore depot to a missile ship.

In the past, missiles and boosters have been transferred from the supply stores to the magazines of the missile ship by means of a plurality of handling devices with each grasping the missile and booster. This necessitated slow and careful handling. The instant invention pertains to a system of handling missiles and boosters so that they are grasped by a handling attachment with cooperates with the remainder of the transfer devices throughout the transfer form the supply source to the strike-down rail. This provides a rapid and positive manner of achieving the transfer.

An object of the present invention is to provide a rapid and positive manner of transferring missiles and boosters.

Another object is to transfer missiles and boosters to a missile ship strike-down rail automatically and accurately.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates the transfer of a booster from the supply source to the missile ship.

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the transfer of the booster to the strike-down elevator.

FIG. 3 is an end elevation of the transfer of the booster to the strike-down rail.

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of a boster raised into engagement with the strike-down rail.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of a missile raised into alignment with the booster.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate like corresponding parts throughout the several views, there is shown in FIG. 1 a supply ship 11 and a missile ship :12. Handling attachments 18 are initially attached to a missile 30 or a booster 15 before they are placed in a stowage container and then transferred to the shore :depot or supply ship. The attachments 18 are accurately positioned and oriented with respect to the missile and booster mating surfaces. When fastening the attachments to the missile and booster surfaces torque wrenches are employed to insure that oniy proper pressures are exerted on the missile and booster surfaces.

The booster 15 is the first to be transferred to the missile ship 11 and then the missile 30. While still in its stowage container, the booster 115 and its attachments 18 are brought to a dolly 14 by a fork lift truck and raised in position to be attached at points 19 and 19. After the attachment the fork lift truck lowers the stowage container and the booster 15 is ready for transfer from the supply ship 11 to the missile ship 12 by means of a sea transfer line 13 attached to the dolly 14 at points 20 and 20. After the dolly 14 has been transferred to the landing and handling platform 22 of the missile ship 12, it is manually positioned over the strike-down hatch 2.1.

A strike-down elevator 25, as best seen in FIG. 2, travels along a column 26. After the dolly '14 is accurately positioned over the strike-down hatch 21 the hatch is Efidhfifi Patented May 7, 1963 opened and the elevator 25 raises to engage the handling attachments 18. The handling attachments 18 are disengaged from the dolly 14 at points 19 .and 19 and the elevator lowers the booster and handling attachments down along column 26 to the check-out car 28.

At the lower limit of elevator travel and after the strikedown elevator 25 has completed its descent the check-out car 28 raises and engages the bases of the handling attachments 18. Upon engaging the handling attachment bases the check-out car continues to rise and frees the handling attachments 18 and booster 15 from the arms of the elevator 25. As best seen in FIG. 3 when the checkout car has raised the booster and handling attachments clear of the elevator arms, it moves along the checlc out platform 27 to a position directly under the strikedown rail 123. To position the booster 15 on the strikedown rail 29 the check-out car 28 raises the booster to the strike-down rail and positions the forward booster lug 16 and the rear booster lug 17 in the rail slot and then moves the booster forward to engage the lugs in the rail. Thereafter, the handling attachments 1% are unfastened from the booster 15 whereupon the check-out car 28 lowers to its initial position. The handling attachments 18 are manually removed from the check-out car 28 and carried to a skip box for return to the supply ship 11. At this time the strike-down rail chain grasps the rear booster lug 17 and moves the booster to its mating position.

The handling of the missile 30 from supply ship 11 to the missile ship 12 is achieved in the same manner as that followed for the transfer of the booster 15 except that the check-out car 28 merely raises the missile 30* into its mating position with the booster. The strike-down chain then rams the booster 15 to the missile 30 and the missile and booster mate. The missile handling attachments 18 are then unfastened, the check-out car is lowered to its initial position, the assembled round is moved to the magazine and handling attachments 18 are removed to the skip box for return to the supply ship 11.

The configuration of the handling attachments 18 for missiles may differ from those employed with boosters because of the handling requirements of missiles. They will, however, function to transfer the missile in the same manner as do the booster handling attachments 18 in transferring boosters.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A method of handling stores comprising the steps of attaching handling attachments to said stores, crating said stores and said handling attachments, conveying said crated stores to the deck of a supply ship, raising said crated stores to a dolly, attaching said stores to said dolly, lowering said crate, attaching a sea transfer line to said dolly, transferring said dolly by said sea transfer line to another ship, manually and accurately positioning said dolly over a strike-down hatch, opening said strike-down hatch, raising a strike-down elevator through said open starike-down hatch, engaging said strike-down elevator to the handling attachments, disengaging the handling attachments from said dolly, lowering said strike-down elevator to its lowest limit of travel, raising a juxtaposed check-out car to engage the bases of said handling attachments, further raising said check-out car to free said handling attachments from said strike-down elevator, moving said check-out car along a check-out platform to a position beneath a strike-down rail, raising said check-out car to position said stores partially within said strikedown rail, engaging said stores in said strike-down rail, and conveying said stores along the strike-down rail to a storage area.

2. A method of handling mating stores comprising the steps of attaching handling attachments to first and second mating stores, individually crating said first and second mating stores and said handling attachments, conveying said crated stores to the deck of a supply ship, raising said first crated store to a dolly, attaching said first mating store to said dolly, lowering said crate, attaching a sea transfer line to said dolly, transferring said dolly by said sea transfer line to another ship, manually and accurately positioning said dolly over a strikedown hatch, opening said strikedown hatch, raising a strike-down elevator, engaging said strike-down elevator to said handling attachments, disengaging said handling attachments from said dolly, lowering said strike-down elevator to its lower limit of travel, raising a juxtaposed check-out car to engage the bases of said handling attachments, further raising said check-out car to free said handling attachments from said strike-down elevator, moving said check-out car along a check-out platform to position beneath a strike-down rail, raising said first mating store partially within said strike-down rail, engaging said first mating store into said strike-down rail, disengaging said handling attachments from said first mating store, lowering said check-out car to its initial position, removing said handling attachments from said check-out car, moving said first mating store to a reserve position, repeating these steps for said second mating store, but merely aligning said second mating store with said strike-down rail and with said first mating store, returning said first mating store to a mating position with said second mating store, disengaging said handling attachments from said second mating store, lowering said check-out car to its initial position, removing said handling attachments from said check-out car, and removing said mated stores to a storage area.

3. A method of handling mating stores comprising the steps of attaching handling attachments to a first mating store, engaging said handling attachments to a first conveyor, conveying said first mating store to a first selected position, raising an elevator to a position beneath and juxtaposed to said handling attachments, engaging said handling attachments to said elevator, disengaging said handling attachments from said first conveyor, lowering said first mating store to a second selected position adjacent a third conveyor, engaging said handling attachments to said third conveyor, disengaging said handling attachments from said elevator, conveying said first mating store to a fourth conveyor, engaging said first mating store to said fourth conveyor, disengaging said handling attachments from said first mating store, conveying said first mating store to a reserve area, attaching handling attachments to a second mating store, engaging said handling attachments to said first conveyor, conveying said second mating store to said first selected position, raising said elevator to a position beneath and juxtaposed to said handling attachments, engaging said handling attachments to said elevator, disengaging said handling attachments from said first conveyor, lowering said second mating store to said second selected position, engaging said handling attachments to said third conveyor, disengaging said handling attachments from said elevator, conveying said second mating store into alignment with said first mating store, mating said first mating store into position with said second mating store, disengaging said handling attachments from said second mating store, and conveying said mating stores to a storage area.

4. A method of handling mating stores as claimed in claim 3 wherein the steps of conveying said stores to a fourth conveyor for said first and second mating stores comprises the steps of conveying said first and second mating stores to a position beneath said fourth conveyor and raising the stores to the said fourth conveyor.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,522,707 Andrews et al Jan. 13, 1925 1,591,278 Brush July 6, 1926 2,981,152 Miller et al Apr. 25, 1961 2,984,157 Johnstone May 16, 1961 

1. A METHOD OF HANDLING STORES COMPRISING THE STEPS OF ATTACHING HANDLING ATTACHMENTS TO SAID STORES, CRATING SAID STORES AND SAID HANDLING ATTACHMENTS, CONVEYING SAID CRATED STORES TO THE DECK OF A SUPPLY SHIP, RAISING SAID CRATED STORES TO A DOLLY, ATTACHING SAID STORES TO SAID DOLLY, LOWERING SAID CRATE, ATTACHING A SEA TRANSFER LINE TO SAID DOLLY, TRANSFERRING SAID DOLLY BY SAID SEA TRANSFER LINE TO ANOTHER SHIP, MANUALLY AND ACCURATELY POSITIONING SAID DOLLY OVER A STRIKE-DOWN HATCH, OPENING SAID STRIKE-DOWN HATCH, RAISING A STRIKE-DOWN ELEVATOR THROUGH SAID OPEN STRIKE-DOWN HATCH, ENGAGING SAID STRIKE-DOWN ELEVATOR TO THE HANDLING ATTACHMENTS, DISENGAGING THE HANDLING ATTACHMENTS FROM SAID DOLLY, LOWERING SAID STRIKE-DOWN ELEVATOR TO ITS LOWEST LIMIT OF TRAVEL, RAISING A JUXTAPOSED CHECK-OUT CAR TO ENGAGE THE BASES OF SAID HANDLING ATTACHMENTS, FURTHER RAISING SAID CHECK-OUT CAR TO FREE SAID HANDLING ATTACHMENTS FROM SAID STRIKE-DOWN ELEVATOR, MOVING SAID CHECK-OUT CAR ALONG A CHECK-OUT PLATFORM TO A 